ArticleBMJ global health2023
Alignment in the registration, selection, procurement and reimbursement of essential medicines for childhood cancers in South Africa.
Article in BMJ global health, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- Fortifying essential medicines supply chains in Sub-Saharan Africa - the curious cases of Kenya and Uganda.Global health action · 2026Review
- Availability of essential medicines for non-communicable diseases: a scoping review of challenges and opportunities.BMJ global health · 2025Article
- The caregiver's experience of childhood cancer treatment in South Africa.Journal of pharmaceutical policy and practice · 2024Article
- Access to childhood cancer medicines in South Africa: a health systems analysis of barriers and enablers.Journal of pharmaceutical policy and practice · 2024Article
- 'We need to be part of the solution': lessons from the 2024 PPRI Conference on ensuring access to affordable medicines through innovative policies.Journal of pharmaceutical policy and practice · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionThe effectiveness of a health system in providing access to medicines is in part determined by the alignment of several core pharmaceutical processes. For South Africa's public health sector, these include the registration of medicines, selection and subsequent procurement through national tenders. Registration, selection and reimbursement are key processes in the private sector. This study assessed the alignment of forementioned processes for essential paediatric oncology medicines in South Africa.
methodsA selection of priority chemotherapeutics, antiemetics and analgesics in the treatment of five prevalent childhood cancers in South Africa was compared with those listed in 1) the WHO Essential Medicines List for Children (WHO EMLc) 2021, 2) the registered health products database of South Africa, 3) the relevant South African National Essential Medicines Lists (NEML), 4) bid packs and awarded tenders for oncology medicines for 2020 and 2022 and 5) oncology formularies from the leading Independent Clinical Oncology Network (ICON) and two private sector medical aid schemes. Consistency between these sources was assessed descriptively.
resultsThere was full alignment for 25 priority chemotherapeutics for children between the NEML, the products registered in South Africa and those included on tender. Due to unsuccessful procurement, access to seven chemotherapeutics was potentially constrained. For antiemetics and analgesics, eight of nine active ingredients included on the WHO EMLc were also registered in South Africa and on its NEML. An exploratory assessment of private sector formularies showed many gaps in ICON's formulary and two medical scheme formularies (listing 33% and 24% of the chemotherapeutics, respectively).
conclusionDespite good alignment in public sector pharmaceutical processes, access constraints to essential chemotherapeutics for children may stem from unsuccessful tenders. Private sector formularies show major gaps; however, it is unclear how this translates to access in clinical practice.
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